Students from an East End school gained important interview skills and advice in a mock interview run by an education charity.

More than 250 year 10 pupils from the Shadwell school took part in the Head to Head mock interview run by Tower Hamlets Education Business Partnership, at Bishop Challoner Catholic Collegiate School on April 24-26.

They were asked to bring along a copy of their CV and to be interviewed by a business volunteer who then offered them constructive feedback on their CV and interview technique.

Martin Kellaway, from KPMG, was a first time volunteer on the programme. He said: “I have a 13-year-old son at home and whilst he knows exactly what he wants to do when he leaves school, I thought it would be useful to bring a business viewpoint to young people and help them see what they should be thinking about.

“I found I had to prompt one or two of them to think positively about themselves but overall, it has been a very good experience.”

Nicola Moule, 15, hopes to be a professional photographer. She said: “I was really nervous that I wouldn’t know what to say but I thought it went really well and I’ll be a lot more confident next time.”

The Head to Head programme has run in Tower Hamlets secondary schools for the past 16 years, with more than 2,500 students being interviewed by a business person under the scheme, each year.